This is what life is like in the USA. “People lived in tents on the street”

In St. Petersburg I worked offline, so after moving I had practically no job. Then my wife suggested that I try my hand at the IT industry – a field where they pay well and you can work remotely. She deals with data. I was interested in this too. I started working as a freelancer.

Thanks to my technical education and colleagues who believed in me, I quickly adapted. I also worked as a psychologist, but most often as a volunteer. In Belgrade, much fewer people are interested in the services of a psychologist than in St. Petersburg.

We decided to participate in the US green card lottery in 2021, when we lived in St. Petersburg. It was our first attempt and we didn't take it seriously because We didn't think about moving to another country at all. Once applications were submitted, we did not track results. We remembered about the lottery in the fall of 2022, when we realized that we would not return to Russia.

It was a period of great uncertainty, we felt fear, so when we found out that we had won the green card, we were not very happy. We never dreamed of living in the US, but I always wanted to see New York and America from the movies. We decided to take advantage of the opportunity that presented itself.

Long road to the USA

We both know English well. I had advanced language classes at school and university, and my wife was working remotely for an American IT company at the time.

In parallel with building a new life in Serbia and obtaining a residence permit we started collecting the documents needed to obtain a green card. On the official website, you had to fill out an extensive questionnaire and collect a whole package of certificates: no criminal record, education, and income. Everything had to be translated. The whole process turned out to be monotonous and tiring. It lasted over half a year.

First, we had to obtain immigrant visas to enter the United States, where we would receive green cards. In all the documents we wrote that we would be invited to an interview at the consulate in Istanbul, but we were sent to Poland anyway. Good thing we still had valid Schengen visas, so in June 2023 we flew to Warsaw.

In Poland, before the interview at the American consulate, we quickly underwent medical examinations. Then the doctor issued us certificates. We didn't have to wait long at the consulate either and after a few days my wife and I received visas. The entire trip took a week.

In June 2023, we began peaceful preparations for our departure. Half a year before the move, my wife went to Russia. She sold our apartment in St. Petersburg, we paid off the loan. In Serbia, I applied for another residence permit.

All this time, we were haunted by the fear that we will be lonely in the United States. All our friends live in Russia and Europe. We didn't have a single person we knew in America. Nevertheless, we flew there at the end of 2023.

First problems

At the airport at the border, the sealed package of documents that we received in Warsaw was taken away from us. We heard that the green card would come in a few months. We finally received it after three months. Throughout this time, we were able to leave and return to the United States with peace of mind.

We decided to stop in Denver, Colorado because that was where my wife's office was located. Besides, living there is not that expensive, taxes are lower than in some other states, especially California.

DenverJohn Coletti/Getty Images

We started looking for an apartment for long-term rent almost immediately, but… We quickly realized that it wouldn't be possible right away. In the United States, renters often require a high credit rating, which Americans have built over years. My wife and I simply did not meet the requirements of the owners, so we decided to rent an apartment for 24 hours on Airbnb.

At the beginning, being in a new place like the United States was very interesting for us. I felt strongly that this was not Europe. There isn't that much of a difference between St. Petersburg, Barcelona and Paris, so you feel more at home in any European city than in the United States. Many cities in the USA are built differently: you can immediately see the famous one-story America. The streets are marked out like a ruler.

What I liked about Denver is that the city is walkable, as walkable as many American cities are there are no conditions for walking at all — they don't even have sidewalks. One of my friends in the USA was stopped by a policeman because he was walking, and this is supposedly not the behavior of a decent citizen.

In my opinion, in Denver – as across America – However, you can't live without your own car. Public transport works, but the distances between bus trips are very long. Buses are typically used by low-income residents. My wife and I were immediately conspicuous.

High prices and taxes

When we moved to the United States, we were prepared for high prices. Most of our budget was taken up by rent. We paid about PLN 2,000 for an Airbnb apartment. hole. (approx. PLN 7,000) per month. Even if it were rented under normal terms, for a longer period, it would cost approximately PLN 1,500. (PLN 5.4 thousand), which is also a lot. For comparison, in Belgrade we could rent an apartment for EUR 300 (PLN 1,200).

After moving to Denver, my wife's American company hired her as a full-time employee. For this reason, my wife started paying huge taxes, amounting to approximately 30-35%. My taxes as an IT freelancer were also around 30%. This was said to be a low rate because taxes in California are even higher – these costs cause residents to migrate to Colorado.

It also cost us a lot health insurance — over $500 (PLN 1.8 thousand) a month for two, even though my wife's company covered part of the amount. The average bill in cafes and restaurants was much higher than in Europe or Russia. There is also a tipping culture in the United States, with 15-20% added to the bill. for service, even in a small pizzeria.

At the same time, I didn't find grocery prices in the U.S. overpriced compared to Europe or Russia, especially considering inflation. However, ready-made meals were much different from what we were used to: they often contained a lot of sugarwhich was noticeable in the taste. That's why we preferred to buy ordinary products: chicken, beef, vegetables – and cook at home.

Chicago and Saint Petersburg

We didn't manage to make friends with anyone. We had contact mainly with my wife's friends. The locals we met were quite friendly. At the same time, my stereotype that Americans are not interested in the world outside their country has been dispelled. It turned out that many people knew the history well. For example, I met people who could name all the former republics of Yugoslavia.

Our main goal in the United States was traveling and exploring the country. Almost as soon as we moved in, we took the car and headed to the Grand Canyon across three states. In Colorado itself, nature is stunning, so we first drove through the mountains. Then we saw Martian landscapes in Arizona. The Grand Canyon itself also made a huge impression on us.

On weekends, my wife and I tried to go somewhere all the time. First we visited New York. It turned out to be a large, noisy and crowded city with a lot of overwhelming advertising. I would call Central Park the most beautiful place. I thought it was a boring space with a plain lawn. However, there are also reservoirs, rocks, winding paths and even birds living there.

A person in crisis of homelessness in New YorkCHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP

I liked Chicago much more than New York. We even found something reminiscent of Saint Petersburg there: a large lake from which you can't see the other shore, like in the Gulf of Finland, and rivers with foldable bridges. Chicago's public transportation system is well developed and there are plenty of places to walk. I especially remember the free zoo – a large green space on the shore of the lake. In the city center there are, of course, classic American skyscrapers. Perhaps if we had stayed in the United States, Chicago would have become a relocation option.

I also went to Las Vegas because a friend of mine flew there. My wife was in San Francisco visiting her friend. We traveled a lot for three months. This is our main positive impression of the United States.

Homelessness the American way

One of the obvious disadvantages of the US is the very large number of homeless people almost everywhere we have been. It looked particularly scary in Denver, but it wasn't even about safety. People lived in tents on the street, while in winter the air temperature could reach minus 25 degrees Celsius.

One man lived in a passenger car right next to our house. He slept there, ate, in the morning he combed his hair, shaved, went out to do his business, and came back in the evening. He had a generator that kept him warm. He even had a laptop and a phone in the car. As I passed him, I involuntarily imagined such a fate for myself.

During the three months I spent in the United States, I had the impression that people are fighting for their lives all the time. You understand that if at some point you become unemployed, you may find yourself on the streets. It's easy to imagine because you have many such examples in front of your eyes. Perhaps we felt this so acutely because we had just moved and we had no loved ones in the US who could help us in our hopeless situation.

In spring, as planned, we flew to Serbia to collect our residence permit. Initially, we did not assume that we would not return to the United States. We left thinking that we had everything to come back.

However, time passed and we kept comparing life in Belgrade and Denver and We had no desire to return. During the year, relatives and friends came to Serbia 10 times, which is unheard of in the United States. Besides, in Serbia it was much cheaper and a bit more like us.

Giving up on the American dream

At the same time, we retained our formal status as US residents, and my wife continued to work full-time in an American company. Therefore, she paid American taxes, which was quite a significant item in our budget.

We started thinking about giving up the green card. I realized that over time, giving up residency could be expensive. I learned that if you have had your green card long enough, you will have to pay a special tax if you cancel.

After a year of living in Belgrade, we realized that we no longer wanted to return to the United States and it was better to give up our residency while it was free. We wrote the declaration, put it in an envelope with the green cards and mailed it to the US. After some time, we received a positive response. In all the letters, we were assured that giving up our residency would not adversely affect obtaining US visas in the future, so we would always be able to return to the United States if we wanted.

Giving up the green card was for us relief. I am sure that the less than four months we spent in the USA are not enough to claim that I know everything about this country. I understand that millions of people live there happily and well, it's not a terrible place. But we didn't want to get to know him better.

We currently live in Serbia and still feel some uncertainty. However, it seems that it will remain with us forever. As if, after moving from Russia, we saw every new place as temporary. Even if we return to St. Petersburg, this feeling will probably not leave us.

Serbia is a nice place to live. There is a warm climate here, the people are friendly, including Russians. In the future, we plan to obtain Israeli citizenship, since my wife is Jewish, and perhaps try to live in Israel.